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Mafalda pasta with napoletana sauce made with ricotta cheese and tomatoes.

Mafaldine Pasta with Napoletana Sauce

Course: Sauce
Cuisine: Italian
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 443kcal
Author: Andrea Soranidis
Dinner ready in 20 minutes with this mafaldine pasta with Napoletana sauce - Learn all the tips to make this classic recipe for mafalda pasta!
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US Customary - Metric

Ingredients

  • 1 medium-large onion finely minced
  • 2 cans organic whole plum tomatoes (15oz/400gr each) or canned datterini tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 8 fresh basil leaves
  • sea salt and black pepper to taste
  • 17.06 oz mafalda pasta
  • 8.8 oz ricotta cheese approx 1 US cup

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil and onion in a skillet over medium-low heat, and cook until the onion is translucent, about 4-5 minutes.
  • Add the tomatoes and their juice and crush them gently with a wooden spoon. Season with 6 basil leaves, cover with a lid, and cook on low heat for 15 minutes, stirring every now and then. The sauce is ready when it reaches a nice creamy but still chunky texture, and has just the right balance of sweetness and savory when you taste it.
  • Meanwhile, in a large pot of lightly salted boiling water, add the mafalda pasta and cook according to the package directions. For al dente pasta, drain it 2-3 minutes before the suggested cooking time. Reserve 2 tablespoons of pasta cooking water.
  • Remove the tomato sauce from the heat, and add in the remaining fresh basil leaves. Drain the ricotta and add it to the sauce, add 2 tablespoons of pasta cooking water and mix through, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Fold in the mafaldine pasta, mix all the ingredients, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, and serve.

Notes

What if the tomato sauce is too bitter? Sometimes the tomato seeds add bitterness to the sauce, so although it's optional, you can cut each whole canned tomato in half, remove the seeds then proceed with making the sauce.
What if the sauce is too acidic? If you find the sauce is a bit sour, simply add a bay leaf whilst it cooks, or a pinch of sugar.
 
 
 

Nutrition

Calories: 443kcal | Carbohydrates: 69g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 21mg | Sodium: 237mg | Potassium: 509mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 374IU | Vitamin C: 14mg | Calcium: 151mg | Iron: 3mg